Waiters and Waitresses Salary in California
The median annual wage for waiters and waitresses in California is $36,080 ($17.35 per hour) — +2.4% vs. the national median of $35,230. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025 estimates.
- Median annual wage
- $36,080
- Mean annual wage
- $44,600
- Median hourly wage
- $17.35
- Employment in CA
- 229,970
229,970 employed · 12.6 per 1,000 jobs
Wage percentiles in California
| Percentile | Annual wage | Hourly wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $34,320 | $16.50 |
| 25th percentile | $34,900 | $16.78 |
| Median (50th) | $36,080 | $17.35 |
| 75th percentile | $39,870 | $19.17 |
| 90th percentile | $68,950 | $33.15 |
What this salary is worth in California
- Cost-of-living adjusted salary
- $32,587
- Median rent burden
- 67.7%
- Est. affordable home price
- $131,617
California prices are 110.7 vs. U.S. average = 100 (BEA RPP, 2024)
Median gross rent in California: $2,036/mo (ACS 2020-2024). 30% of income = $902/mo
At 6.67% 30-yr rate (FRED, 2026-08), 20% down, 28% front-end DTI, 1.5%/yr taxes+insurance
For context, the median home value in California is $734,700 (ACS 2020-2024).
Estimates from documented formulas — see methodology. Not financial advice.
Waiters and Waitresses salary in other states
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Other salaries in California
- Accountants and Auditors in California
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks in California
- Business Operations Specialists, All Other in California
- Cashiers in California
- Construction Laborers in California
- Cooks, Restaurant in California
- Customer Service Representatives in California
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education in California
- Fast Food and Counter Workers in California
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers in California
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers in California
- First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers in California
- General and Operations Managers in California
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers in California
- Home Health and Personal Care Aides in California
- Human Resources Specialists in California
- Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners in California
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand in California
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers in California
- Light Truck Drivers in California
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General in California
- Management Analysts in California
- Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in California
- Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants in California
- Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators in California
- Nursing Assistants in California
- Office Clerks, General in California
- Project Management Specialists in California
- Receptionists and Information Clerks in California
- Registered Nurses in California
- Retail Salespersons in California
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel in California
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products in California
- Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in California
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive in California
- Security Guards in California
- Software Developers in California
- Stockers and Order Fillers in California
- Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary in California
About this data
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- Regional Price Parities — data period 2024, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates — data period 2020-2024, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- Federal Reserve Economic Data — data period 2026-08, retrieved August 17, 2026.
Figures are shown exactly as published by the source or derived by the documented formulas on our methodology page. Where a source suppresses an estimate, we show “—” rather than a substitute value.